


Hold Onto Me Tight

by akwardcadabra



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Attempt at Humor, Cat Owner Gavin Reed, Connor Is Having A Hard Time Trying To Be His Old Self, Cuddling & Snuggling, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Good Parent Hank Anderson, Hank Anderson Is Basically Everyone's Dad, Hurt/Comfort, Jealous Connor (Detroit: Become Human), Light Depictions Of Crime Scenes And Murder Victims, Mentions of Suicide, Mentions of child neglect, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Platonic Cuddling, Post-Pacifist Best Ending (Detroit: Become Human), Sequel, Sequel to: Through The Eyes Of A Child, Soft Gavin Reed, Upgraded Connor | RK900 Has a Different Name
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-29
Updated: 2019-03-23
Packaged: 2019-07-04 06:37:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 14,139
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15835794
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/akwardcadabra/pseuds/akwardcadabra
Summary: Connor is having a hard time being his old self again. After getting his old body back, he can't quite seem to shake off the childish behaviour or how sensitive he's being, no matter how hard he tries. And he is trying his hardest. Hank tries to help him as best as he could, even if Connor's problems seem to interfere with their work.Sequel to (Sorry, embedding doesn't seem to work) https://archiveofourown.org/works/15240132/chapters/35347707





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, so this is the sequel to "Through The Eyes Of A Child" that no one asked for. The idea came to me randomly and I wanted to put it into a fic. This will have several chapters, though it won't be as long as the original story. (Sorry, if this chapter isn't as deep yet; it'll get there.)  
> Kudos and Comments are as always appreciated if you want to leave any of those.  
> Have fun and I'll see you in the next chapter.

It had now been almost two weeks since Connor had gotten his old body back. But things didn’t simply go back to normal and anyone that knew Connor and Hank was aware of that. Connor had a hard time shaking off his childish behaviours and tendencies. And even though he was getting better and managed to hide it better, he still had a hard time. But he didn’t want to worry Hank so he opted for keeping it a secret and so far it was working out well.

That was until work got more stressful. It started on a Wednesday afternoon when Fowler called them into his office.

“Hank, I have a new case for you and Connor.” He stated.

“Shoot.” Hank said calmly, leaning back a bit.

“There have been a lot of break-ins into the apartments and houses of androids. As you are aware, many androids have recently been able to buy or rent places to live. But someone is breaking into them and –if people or androids are present at the time- he is also hurting them.” Fowler explained. “If someone tries to defend their house, the person attacks them.”

“Has no one been able to identify the culprit?” Connor asked gently.

“Unfortunately, no. The culprit was wearing a mask and gloves. No one was able to identify him.” Fowler explained away. “Also there are only two people that have come into contact with him up until now.”

“You keep calling the culprit by a male pronoun. Do we know it he is male?” Connor asked and leaned forward in his seat.

“The two victims say that the voice of their attacker sounded like a man’s voice. But they aren’t sure about it. But up until now, it’s our best lead. We also know that he is rather tall –about 6 foot tall. But that’s all we know so far.” Fowler let his voice fade off and both Hank and Connor nodded.

“Alright. Can we go and investigate the crime scene?” Hank asked.

“Yes. There are already other officers there. At this crime scene, there was no one attacked. But the two people that lived in the flat are at the station, being interrogated.” Fowler explained. “It was a human woman and an android. She is 30 years old and the android is an AJ700 unit. The human woman’s name is Nina Perkins and she sees the android as a sibling of sorts. His name is Jason. They have recently taken another AJ700 unit in with them. She lived with them for two weeks but we weren’t able to contact her as of now and the two of them don’t know where she is. I’ll send you a picture of her. Her name is Helen. But that’s all they have been able to tell us up until now.”

“Alright, we’ll go now.” Hank said and got up. “Mail the information to us, if they say anything else.”

Fowler agreed and Connor and Hank left. The apartment was not far from the station. When Hank and Connor entered, the man looked at the android.

“Any ideas, yet?” Hank asked with a smile. 

“No, not yet. I’ll need to see the crime scene.” Connor smiled and got off the elevator, once they’d made it to the 7th floor.

When they entered the apartment, Gavin came up to them. He made quick work of telling them all the information that Fowler had already told them.

“We already now that.” Hank said quickly. “Anything else? And why are you here?”

“I’m still supposed to help you two until Tina gets back from maternity leave. And I was close by so Fowler sent me here and told me he’d sent you in after.” Gavin explained. “Anyways, we think that the attacker used a tool to unlock the door and got inside. He was looking for something specific, I believe.”

“Why?” Connor asked.

“Because he left money and things like jewelry behind.” Gavin mumbled. “We still don’t know what he stole. Jason and Nina aren’t sure, either.”

“Did they say anything else?” Hank asked.

“No, when they got back and found their flat like this, they called the police. They said they weren’t sure if anything was stolen.” 

Hank nodded. “Alright, we’ll just look around and do police work.”

“Yeah, we probably should, huh?” Gavin snorted.

Connor smiled as the two men interacted. “I’ll take the kitchen and bedroom. You two can look around the rest of the house.”

They agreed and Connor took off towards the kitchen. He didn’t find anything crucial, however. The only thing he found was the safe which someone had tried to break but ultimately not succeeded at. Then he went into the bedroom and looked around. Objects and clothes were thrown everywhere. 

“He really searched for something.” Connor mused and looked into the closet when he found a sort of door in the wall. Running his fingers over them, he gasped a little. “Something is hidden inside the wall. The walls in this building are rather thin and there are crawlspaces between them. Maybe the things he was looking for is in there.”

He hooked his fingers onto the slightly open door and pulled with all his strength. It opened but he wasn’t prepared for what he found. The body of the android that they had taken in fell into the closet. It was unmistakenly Helen. Her face was partially caved in from what looked like a fight but it was her. Connor’s hands flew up to his face to suppress a scream and he stumbled back against the bed.

Panic rose in his chest and tears started flowing from his eyes as he saw her mangled boy that had been carelessly stuffed into the wall. The culprit wanted to hide her, that was for sure. He had to get Hank and Gavin but he couldn’t let them see him cry. He was an adult after all and no longer a child.

Thus he wiped his tears and did his best to harden his facial expression before calling out to them. Both of them came in and while Gavin called for backup, Hank got onto his knees and inspected Helen.

“Breaking and entering charges, as well as physical assault weren’t enough, huh? Now he has murder charges on his hands.” Hank mumbled and got up. He turned to Connor and the android quickly blinked the tears away. “You okay? That must have been quite a shock?”

“She was inside the wall. He stuffed her in there.” Connor said in a whispered tone. “And I tried to open the door in the closet in the hopes of finding what he was looking for but she fell out.”

Gavin turned to Connor. “Backup is on the way. Are you sure you’ll be okay?”

“Yes.” Connor nodded. “I can handle this.”

“If you say so.” Gavin said. “I’ll go downstairs to get the backup and lead them here.”

With that, he was gone. Hank turned to Connor and rubbed his back. “It’s alright if this upset you.”

“I’m an adult, Hank!” Connor exclaimed. “You and Gavin aren’t as upset.”

“What the hell?” Hank breathed. “You don’t think, Gavin and I aren’t upset? You think it’ll not upset me to find Helen dead and mangled in the wall?”

“No, I-” Connor croaked out. “That’s not what I meant. I-”

Hank sighed when he heard someone call his name. “Look, we’re all upset and that’s normal. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ll need to see what that guy wants.”

When Hank left, Connor sat on the bed and buried his face in his hands, sobbing quietly. He had to apologize to Hank and he had to get his act together. No more would he break down at crime scenes and his dependency on Hank had to shrink, too. When backup arrived, he got up and then walked towards the door, hardening his expression.

The moment he walked out of the room, he nearly collided with Gavin. The man looked up at him and nodded.

“Connor found Helen’s body.” He said to one of the other officers.

“Alright.” Said officer said. “Well, we’ll have to secure the crime scene and get the information over to the interrogators so they can ask Jason and Nina about this. Has Connor taken samples?”

“There were no blood samples here. The only sample I got was liquid on the floor but it turned out to have been water from a vase.” He said.

He could see Hank scrunch up his nose as he mentioned the liquids he had analyzed. The police officers nodded.

“You’ll head back to the station and deliver the information. We will secure the scene and interrogate the neighbors.” The officer said.

“Thank God. My shift is over in about 20 minutes. That means I can head home.” Gavin explained. “Unless you need me here.” He quickly added.

“We’ll take it from here.” The officer assured. “We’ll have you review the evidence when we’ve collected all of it.”

“Alright.” Hank nodded. “Come on, Conner. Let’s go.” He mumbled and walked off.

Connor followed him. 

\---

It wasn’t until they were in Hank’s car and had almost made it home that Connor decided to apologize.

“Hank?” He mumbled.

“Yeah?” Hank asked, eyes not leaving the road.

“I’m sorry.” The android sighed. “I shouldn’t have alluded to you and Gavin not being upset about finding Helen dead. I was just so shocked and angry with myself for not managing to stay calm as you two did.”

“I’m not angry.” Hank said gently. “And listen to me, Con. You don’t have to be calm about this. It obviously upsets you. Gavin and I have just been doing this for a longer time.” He explained. “And you’re still shaking off the childish behaviour. So don’t worry. No hard feelings. I’m sure you’ll get back to normal in no time and if not, that’s just how it is.”

“Thank you, dad.” Connor smiled gently, relaxing a little. “Hey, would you mind if I slept in your bed tonight?”

“As long as you actually enter sleep-mode and not stare at me the whole night, I’ll be fine.” Hank chuckled.

Connor let out a hearty laugh, making Hank smile. “Alright, I won’t. I can imagine that it must creep you out.”

“Yeah, it does.” Hank chuckled as he parked the car and turned it off.

“Is it really fine to sleep in your bed tonight?” Connor asked gently. “I haven’t done that since I got my old body back.”

“If you want to, it’s alright. The bed’s big enough.” Hank shrugged. “Now let’s go inside. I’m hungry.”

“Then we should get you something to eat. Would you like me to cook?” Connor smiles gently.

“Depends on what you want to cook.” Hank said and turned to face Connor.

“I was thinking about something with vegetables.” He smiled brightly. Hank couldn’t even muster up a grumpy reply.

“I guess.” He mumbled and got out of the car. “Come on. Let’s go inside.”

Connor smiled and leaped out of the car, following Hank inside. 

\---

Around 11 pm, Hank settled for bed and Connor followed him sheepishly, a child-like innocence and uncertainty in his eyes.

“Is it really alright, if I-”

Hank interrupted him, getting into bed. “Connor, I think I’ve told you like five times already. It’s fine. I don’t mind and to be blatantly honest, it’s nice to have someone else in bed with you. Come on, son. Let’s get some sleep.”

When Connor heard Hank call him, his son, he smiled happily and all but leaped into bed, cuddling up under the covers. “Hug?” He asked in a quiet voice.

Hank sighed and smiled gently, wrapping an arm around Connor. “You okay?”

“Yes. Why wouldn’t I be?” Connor asked gently, closing his eyes.

“The crime scene.” Hank said gently. “When I saw you there, standing next to the body, tears in your eyes, it reminded me of when you had the YK500 body.” The man explained. “Do you think that some of the behaviours transferred, too?”

“I don’t know.” Connor whispered. “I just want to be a grown-up. I mean, I have to.”

“Connor, if you need time to get back to your old self, you can take your time. If you find it hard to shake off the childish behaviour now and then or if you are more sensitive than before, it’s fine. We all understand that. And I’m here for you. You know that, right?” Hank asked softly.

Connor nodded against his side. “I know. I just want to be an adult for you and the team. It’s embarrassing for you to have a grown android come with you that cries over crime-scenes.”

“Don’t assume what I feel.” Hank said quickly. “I couldn’t give less of a fuck about that.” He explained. “You're like a son to me and I want you to be happy and feel safe. And if you need time, that’s fine. If you need me being there for you, that’s fine. And if you never get back to normal fully, that’s fine.”

“Thanks, dad.” Connor whispered. “Maybe you should get some sleep.”

“Are you alright now?”

“Yes.” Connor smiled, cuddling a little closer. “Sleep well.”

“You, too. Or sleep-mode well.” Hank chuckled and closed his eyes. 

Connor sighed. He had to be more of an adult but he could take time for that. He could do that if Hank said it was alright. And Hank would help him. He would get back to normal soon enough but until then, his father was there for him. The android smiled, feeling safe and secure in Hank’s arms. The last thing he heard, before entering sleep-mode was Sumo trotting in and laying down next to the bed. He made a mental note to watch out for the dog when he stood up the next morning, not wanting to step on his tail and then entered sleep-mode. He’d be alright.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Connor and Gavin go to a crime scene alone because Hank has to talk to Fowler. A multitude of things happen and Connor finds out a lot about Gavin.

“Alright, Connor.“ Hank said the next day during breakfast. “We should just talk about this. Don’t worry about me being mad. I just need to understand what’s happening.”

Connor looked down at the table, tapping his index finger against his thumb a few times. “I think that some of the behaviours of a YK500 model have been so deeply engraved into my mind that they may have been transferred, too. But just as any child, I can probably try to shake it off by simply acting against it. Like when you leave your child at the kindergarten and it cries. But if it does it often enough, it will eventually get used to it.” He paused. “I mean it’s not really like that. Do you know what I mean?”

“I guess. So you’re just a little more sensitive and maybe scared of things that you were scared of when you were a child?” Hank asked.

“I suppose.” Connor whispered. “Listen, I know that you’re not angry. But I’m sorry. This is an inconvenience and I-”

“It’s not. Fuck, it’s not your fault that all this happened. You were told to enter that building without waiting for backup and you were torn apart when it blew up. They shouldn’t have sent you. It’s the police’s fault, Not yours.” Hank said, anger in his voice. But Connor knew it wasn’t directed at him. “You’ll do just fine at work. I’m here for you. And if you get scared of crime scenes, we’ll leave.”

“But I’m a grown-up!” Connor exclaimed.

“So what? I’ve seen grown ass man scream in fear when they saw us chasing down criminals.” Hank grumbled. “If you need time to get back to normal, I’ll help you and you’ll get that time. And if you stay like this, it’s fine, too. You’ll be alright.”

“Thanks.” Connor whispered, smiling lightly. “You’re a good father.”

“I hope you.” Hank grinned.

“We should get ready for work.” Connor said gently and got up. Hank just nodded.

\---

When they arrived at work, Gavin came walking up to them, the case file in hand. He looked rather shocked.

“Connor! Hank!” He said quickly, almost running up to them

“What the hell are you on about?” Hank mumbled, eyeing the man.

“There’s been another break-in. Only about 45 minutes ago and you can’t see the culprit leave, so he might still be there. We gotta go.” He urged.

Hank rolled his eyes. “Yes, calm down.”

Connor smiled. “He’s just excited to do his work.” 

Gavin looked at Connor and rolled his eyes jokingly. “Yeah, whatever.” He stopped. “Oh, Hank. I forgot to tell you. Fowler wants to see you. Maybe we can go ahead and you just come when you’re done.”

“Yeah, sure. Just be careful.” He said, looked at Connor. “Don’t get yourself in danger.”

Connor smiled gently. “Of course not, dad.” He waved and went off, raising his hand and motioning for Gavin to follow him.

“See you later, old man.” Gavin grinned and followed Connor.

“Whatever, you dick.” Hank said sarcastically and went to talk to Fowler.

Gavin and Connor entered the man’s car. Connor looked around a bit and smiled. 

“You have a fluffy pendant on your keychain. That’s cute.” He chuckled.

Gavin rolled his eyes, but Connor could see the edges of his mouth twitching up. “It’s just a fluffy ball made out of garn. My goddaughter gave it to me.”

“How is Ashley doing?” Connor smiled gently as Gavin started to drive.

“She’s going good. She’s getting into third grade soon.” Gavin said, looking at the road. “She really wants to become a vet. She told me when I last saw her and I think it’d fit her very well. She loves animals and they love her. But she’ll get another homeroom teacher. That’s a pity because she really liked Mr. Langton, but I’m sure she’ll do fine with the new teacher. She’s such an open and bright girl.”

Connor smiled as he noticed Gavin starting to ramble. He wasn’t even paying much attention to what he was saying anymore.

“You reminded me of her a lot when you had the YK500’s body. You were so bright and happy, like her. Ashley is also really into drawing and colouring. I have a lot of the picture she drew me in a folder at home –some of them even on the fridge. She feels so proud when she comes over and sees them hanging there. Her godmother is an asshole, though. Mary never hangs up Ashley’s drawings.” He stopped at a red light and quickly glanced at Connor. “But she’s Abigail’s best friend since elementary school, so I guess it’s just natural that she wants her to be the godmother.”

“I assume Abigail’s the name of Ashley’s mother?” Connor inquired.

“Yes. Should have mentioned that.” Gavin said, starting to drive again when the red light switched to green.

“Ashley is lucky to have a godfather like you.” The android said in a gentle tone. “I know I really liked you when I was a child.”

“Don’t tell anyone at work, but I really have a soft spot for children. You might have noticed.” Gavin said gently. “And I love Ashley very much.”

“I know.” Connor smiled. “Don’t worry; my lips are sealed.”

Gavin chuckled and parked the car, looking out at the building. “Close to my flat.” He mumbled. “I could even run over to my flat and get an umbrella.”

Connor looked out into the rain and laughed a little. “But you’d get wet anyway, wouldn’t you?”

“Yeah.” Gavin shook his head, smiling. “I don’t know how I got that idea anyway. Now let’s go inside.”

As expected, the inside of the apartment was a mess. Things were scattered everywhere. It looked like there had been a fight. Connor began scanning the room.

“What are you doing?” Gavin asked.

“Scanning the room. It looks like there was a fight so maybe the culprit was injured and I can find tiny traces of blood or other fluids to track him.” Connor explained.

Gavin’s face scrunched up. “That’s kinda gross, you know that, right?”

“Yeah, Hank told me, already.” Connor joked and went back to scanning. When he found traces of Thirium, he looked up. “Blue blood. I found traces of blue blood. And it’s not from the male CX100 unit that lived here. Maybe it’s the culprit. I’ll follow the traces. You stay behind me.”

Gavin nodded and took out his gun, aiming it past Connor’s head as the android approached the source of the traces. The source turned out to be a pantry that had been locked from the inside.

“Sir or Ma’am.” Gavin said loudly. “This is the police. We ask you to cooperate and come out of the pantry. We will not harm you. We simply wish to take you to the station and talk to you. You have the right to a lawyer and once at the station we will give it to you.”

They heard sniffling and sobbing from the inside. Connor looked at Gavin. “Was there another person living here?”

Gavin shook his head. “Not that I know. You literally have the file in digital form, right? Can’t you look it up.”

Connor nodded and quickly did so, his LED turning yellow. “The CX100 reported a YK500 as missing.” He said quickly. “It’s probably the child android. He only reported it missing 10 minutes ago.”

Gavin nodded and lowered the gun. “Hello?” He knocked on the pantry door. “Are you a child?”

“Yes.” Was the reply coming from inside, and Connor nodded.

“It sounds like a child.” He whispered.

“Alright.” Gavin said. “My name is Detective Gavin Reed. I’m from the police. You can come out now. You’re safe.”

“I’m hurt.” The child sobbed. “B-badly. I’m bleeding.”

“We know.” Connor said gently. “If you come out now, we will we able to help you and get you all fixed up.”

“Promise that no one will hurt me?”

“I promise.” Gavin said and the locked clicked. The child came out. And both of the men gasped a little. He was really badly hurt. A knife was lodged in his chest, blue blood seeping out of the wound. Connor got to his knees and the child fell into his arms.

“Where’s dad?” The boy sobbed.

“The android that lived with you? He’s at the police station.” Gavin promised. “We will get you to him, once you’ve been fixed up.”

“It hurts.” The child cried, his little hand finding its way to Connor’s jacket, grabbing it tightly.

“It’s alright.” Connor said gently. “Gavin, request an ambulance.”

Gavin nodded and turned away, doing so. “We have an injured android. A YK500 unit. He has a stab wound with the weapon still lodged in his chest. Yes, it’s his left chest. I don’t know and I don’t think he can answer all these questions. Just send someone. Yes, that’s the address. Just come quickly. Okay, bye.” He hung up. And turned to Connor. “How’s he doing?”

Connor just stared at the boy, tears in his eyes. “H-he shut down.” He sobbed.

“It’s alright. They can reboot him, right?” Gavin asked gently. “Right?”

“Yes.” Connor cried. “But he died in my arms and I couldn’t do anything to help him. I’m CyberLife’s most advanced prototype and I can’t even save another android.”

Gavin knelt down next to him, calling someone to get the child downstairs before looking at Connor. “Calm down. There are things that we can’t change no matter how much we’d love to do that. It’s no one’s fault but the culprit’s and we’ll get that fucker. Right?”

Connor nodded, still crying as two officers tried to lift the boy from his arms. They took him downstairs and Gavin held Connor’s shoulder gently, trying to calm him down.

“I-I should stay calm. I’m more emotional than most humans.” He cried. “Stupid explosion. If it hadn’t happened, I wouldn’t have had to take the YK500 unit and I wouldn’t be so emotional right now.”

“Hey, calm down.” Gavin said quietly. “It’s not your fucking fault that you were sent in there alone. And it’s not bad to be emotional. Maybe you need a break.”

“I can’t take a break! Not when there’s someone out there, hurting people and androids alike.” Connor turned to face Gavin.

“Just a quick break.” Gavin said, hoising Connor up. “Just 15 minutes to calm down.”

“Alright.” Connor agreed. “15 minutes.”

That’s when they heard the commotion from over their heads. Both looked up and Gavin turned to Connor.

“What’s going on?” He asked. “This is the upper floor.”

Connor’s LED spun yellow for a few seconds and then he went out the apartment door. Gavin had a hard time catching up to him. He got to Connor when the android stopped underneath a latch.

“What the fuck are you doing?”

“There’s a crawlspace between the ceiling and the outer roof. But the hedge requires a special ladder to reach. Probably because the people living here shouldn’t go up there.” Connor mused. 

“Can’t you extend your arms or something?” Gavin asked, obviously at a loss of ideas. “I don’t know where to find the ladder.”

“No, Gavin. I can’t.” A hint of amusement was evident in Connor’s voice. “But you could give me a boost.”

Gavin sighed, not really wanting to do so but knowing that it was pointless to argue about that. He linked his hands together and parted his legs for added stability. Connor nodded and got one foot onto Gavin’s hands, reaching up for the latch.

“You’re not as heavy as expected.”

“Thank you.” Connor grinned and undid the lock of the hatch, pulling on the ladder until it came down. He quickly jumped to the floor and pulled Gavin to the side. “I’ll go up there. You stay here and wait to see if the culprit gets down.”

Gavin nodded and watched Connor go up. “Be careful! And call me if he’s up there. Don’t try to do it on your fucking own.”

Connor nodded and climbed into the crawlspace. Gavin stood by, hearing an officer over his radio set, telling him that the boy was taken care of. That’s when he heard Connor scream out in what sounded like pain. Instantly, he climbed up the ladder. The crawlspace was small and Gavin had to move on his hands and knees. He crawled forward, hand on his gun. 

That’s when he saw Connor, lying on the ground, unable to move as the attacker had pinned his hand to the floor with a knife. As Gavin moved to help Connor, he saw the attacker climb out through a window and out of sight. He called through the radio, telling them that the attacker was outside, most likely on the roof.

“Go after him!” Connor exclaimed.

“How? He’s too fast. Guys on the ground have a better chance of getting him.” Gavin explained, pulling the knife out. “Alright, let’s get you out of here.” He pulled Connor along. “Are you hurt anywhere else?”

“My head.” The android said, following Gavin down the ladder. “I need to go into repair mode. But I need a safe place to do so. Drive me to the station, please.”

“How long will it take?”

“Half an hour. I haven’t run a diagnostic analysis, yet. But the damaged can’t be too fundamental.” Connor explained.

“Let’s go to my flat. It’s closer. It’ll save us time.” The man explained, hoisting Connor’s arm over his shoulder to support him. He then turned to the radio on his shoulder. “I’ll take Connor to my flat so he can go into repair mode. We’ll be back in about half an hour. Have you got the attacker?”

“No. He escaped via the rooftops. But perhaps the child android saw him.” The officer on the other end said. “Once he’s reset, we’ll question him.”

“Alright. We’ll be back soon.” Gavin said.

“I’ll tell you where to go. Probably to the station.” 

“Thanks.” Gavin mumbled, leading Connor outside and across the street to his apartment building. Just like the other buildings around it was only about 5 stories tall. Unfortunately, Gavin lived on the 4th floor and the elevator was broken. Thus he had to drag Connor up the stairs.

When they stumbled into the apartment, two cats came walking towards the door. One of them a ginger cat and the other one a grey cat with white paws. Gavin quickly closed the door with his foot and dragged Connor to the couch.

“You okay there?” He asked.

“I will be. It’ll take approximately half an hour.” He said. “And the cut on my hand will heal on its own.” He looked up. “You have cats? I never knew. What are their names?”

Gavin looked away and sighed. “Mittens and Whiskers. And I swear to fuck, if you laugh at me, I’ll kick you out.” He added quickly.

“That’s adorable.” Connor smiled as he put his hands on his thighs. “Male or female?”

“Both female.” Gavin said and moved closer. “Do you need anything or do I just leave you here to reboot?”

“I’ll be unresponsive during the repair mode, so you can do whatever you like.” He said, closing his eyes. “I’ll be back with you in about half an hour.”

“Alright. I’ll just get some coffee for myself then and give the cats some water.” He mumbled and walked off into the small kitchen.

Connor nodded and went into repair mode, his vision turning black. 

When he awoke again, Gavin was sitting in the armchair opposite of him, the ginger cat in his lap. Connor blinked and looked at the man, who seemed to be watching him intently. 

“I’m done.” Connor said. “The hand will repair itself in no time.”

“Can’t you do that quicker? Like with heat or something?” Gavin asked, petting the car.

“I suppose so. If you have a welding device, we could use it on me.” Connor said and looked up. “Is that Whiskers or Mittens.” He grinned.

“It’s Whiskers.” Gavin stood up, putting the cat down onto the floor. “I don’t have a welding machine. But I’m sure they have something like that at the station. We’ll ask the people there.”

“Alright.” Connor said and got up. “Thank you for letting me stay here.”

“Don’t mention it.” Gavin waved it off and took his keys. “Oh, and Connor?”

“Yes?” The android asked as they made their way to the car.

Gavin grinned at him. “Isn’t it pretty obvious that Mittens is the cat with the white paws?”

Connor laughed a little and followed Gavin to the car, nodding in agreement

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, I firmly believe that Gavin as cats. Also, I will introduce RK900 in one of the next chapters -and no, in my characterisation of him, he's not a douche or anything, just a little stern.  
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Leave a Kudos or Comment, if you did and want to.   
> I'll see you in the next chapter. ^^


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When RK900 arrives to help with the investigation, Connor fears that he might replace him not only in the workplace but as Hank's son and friend.

When Connor and Gavin arrived at the station, Hank came running towards them.

“Where the fuck did you go?” He snapped. “Why didn’t you tell me you were going somewhere else? I was worried.”

“I’m sorry, dad.” Connor sighed. “We just went to Gavin’s flat so I could go into repair mode. I got hit in the head.”

“It’s fine.” Hank sighed, rubbing his forehead, not able to stay mad at Connor. “Just tell me where you’re going when you leave an active crime scene.”

“Of course.” Connor nodded. “Oh, Gavin has two cats. Did you know? And they are the absolute cutest. Their names are-”

Gavin cleared his throat, glaring at Connor. The android stopped and smiled lightly.

“Their names are Assnugget and Dicknacho.” He corrected himself.

“Interesting name choice.” Hank said sarcastically. “I’d expected you to be a cat guy, though. Guess, I was right.”

Gavin stared at Connor for a second, weirded out before snapping his head to Hank. “Yeah, I am. Anyway, what was Fowler talking to you about anyway?”

“Let’s talk about it in the break room, alright? It’s kind of a delicate matter. Not everyone should know. Follow me.” Hank said and walked to the break room.

Gavin and Connor followed, the man glancing at the android before muttering. “Assnugget and Dicknacho?”

“I was panicking.” Connor defended himself. “I had to think of names you’d give an animal that would align with the asshole persona you put up at work.”

“Assnuget and Dicknacho.” Gavin snorted. “You’re something else.” 

Hank turned to them when they entered the room and closed the door. 

“Alright, first of all, Connor, I need you to not get the wrong ideas about this.” Hank said gently. “But they are sending another CyberLife android here to help with the investigation, given that the culprit is now harming people and attacking them. And given that you are still not completely back to your old safe, I thought it would be a good idea, as well. To take a bit of the pressure off you.”

“Excuse me?” Connor asked, inching closer. “Are they replacing me? What other model? I released all the androids that were in the storage.”

“It’s sort of an updated version of you. They had been working on it but never got to finish it before the revolution started. Now they heard about everything that happened and finished it so that they can get it to assist us. It’s an RK model. RK900, I think.” Hank explained.

“They are replacing me. With a new RK unit.”

“No, they aren’t. They thought he might be of help and afterward, maybe he could work here. Two android detectives are better than one, right?” Hank smiled a little, trying to cheer Connor up. 

“Will he work with us or will he replace me?” Connor asked more urgently.

“He will assist us. He’ll be paired with Gavin, I think. I mean, I insisted on the two of us staying together, Connor.” Hank explained. “And he needs a place to stay. I said that until we find something else he could sleep on the couch or something.”

“I see.” Connor’s voice turned colder.

“Hey.” Gavin started. “He’s not replacing you. Don’t take it that way.”

“How else am I supposed to take it? I’m having problems shaking off the childlike fears and the dependence on Hank. And now they’re sending a new unit, like me but better, to help. Because I’m clearly not capable enough for them. He’ll even live in Hank’s house with me.” Connor snapped at Gavin.

Gavin nodded. “Listen, when you first came, I felt the same. I thought that you’d replace me or that they would get rid of me because I was no longer needed. But Fowler values his officers and unless you behave totally unprofessional or do a shit job, he’ll not get rid of you. He just wants to help. Alright?”

Connor sighed and bit his lip, happy about Gavin opening up to him but still weary. ”Is this why you were so rude to me?”

“Yeah.” Gavin shrugged. “But then you got the YK500 body and I could not possibly be a dick to a kid. And when I got to know you, I couldn’t bring myself to be an asshole even after you got back to normal.”

“I’m glad you’re opening up to me, Gavin.” 

“But if you tell anyone about the cats and about what I told you in the car, I’ll be pissed.” The detective joked. “Now, come on. You know that no one can replace you, right? I mean I’ve never seen someone that gets that excited about dogs. Or that licks blood from the floor.”

“You know why I do that.” Connor countered.

“Just think of RK900 as your little brother. He’ll need guidance at times and you can show him all the things that you discovered after you were activated.”

Connor smiled at that. “Yes, I suppose I could. He’d be like a brother.” 

“And no one could replace you as a son for me.” Hank promised. “He’ll arrive this afternoon. Fowler said they never finished him but now they did, so he doesn’t even know about what happened in the past months, I bet.”

“Yeah, we’ll have to brief him on everything.” Gavin groaned. “I hope he’s not incompetent or as invasive as Connor.” He grinned at the android.

Connor smiled at him. “I just like to know the people I work with.”

“Whatever.” 

\---

At around 4 pm, Fowler called Gavin, Connor, and Hank to his office. Gavin sighed and got there, followed by Connor and Hank who had been doing paperwork.

“I want you to go to the front doors and welcome RK900. I trust the Lieutenant to have told you about him. Did you?” He turned to Hank.

“I did.” Hank said.

“He’s told you that he is the newest model of CyberLife. They even got special clearance from Jericho to continue working on him. CyberLife will not make any other models, however, and will remain a place for broken androids to get repaired.” Fowler informed them.

“Just say android hospital.” Gavin mumbled. 

“Go and welcome him.” Fowler nodded in the direction of the door and the three took off to greet the newcomer.

RK900 walked in not long after they had arrived at the door. He looked a lot like Connor, simply taller and with blue eyes. 

“RK900?” Hank asked. “Do you have a name that we could use instead of RK900?”

RK900 looked at him. “I apologize, Lieutenant Anderson. I was not given a name, but you can choose a name to refer to me as.”

“How about Nines?” Gavin suggested.

“Sure.” Hank shrugged.

“Very well then. You can call me Nines.” Nines said and looked at Connor. “You are the RK800 unit Connor, am I correct?”

“Yes.” Connor smiled. “I’ll be your big brother and I’ll show you around.”

“Even though we don’t have familiar relations, I appreciate the sentiment.” Nines nodded. “Can I see the case file?”

“Sure.” Hank said. “Follow us. By the way, I’m Hank Anderson and you’ll be living with me and Connor for the time being.”

“I’m Gavin Reed.” Gavin said. “Just call me Reed. Most people here do.” He shrugged.

“Very well then, Detective Reed. I was informed that I would be paired with you.” 

“Yeah, just don’t get on my nerves. One android bugging me is bad enough.” He looked at Connor and grinned a little.

“I can assure you that our interactions will be solely based on work, Detective.” 

“Are you a deviant?” Gavin mumbled. “Just, you know, out of interest.”

“CyberLife gave me free will, based on the results of the revolution lead by Jericho. However, I’m the most advanced CyberLife model to ever walk the streets of Detroit, so I can assure you that I will not let my free will interfere with my work. While at work or doing things for work, I will be as efficient as you can imagine. My main goal is to catch the culprit. And I am sure that it is also Connor’s goal, as well as the one you two have, Detective Reed.” He turned to him and then to Hank.

“So you have free will but you’re deciding to work very efficiently?” Hank asked.

“Yes, that is precisely it.” 

“Alright then.” Hank said. “Glad someone is doing good work around here.” He laughed.

Connor looked up. “Are you talking about me? I understand that I’m no longer the most advanced android out there but I can still do a good job at finding the culprit.”

“I was talking about Gavin and his ‘I don’t get work done until I have my fucking coffee’ attitude.” Hank chuckled. “No need to get so defensive, kid.”

“I’m not getting defensive. I was merely asking who you were talking about.”

“Anyway, let’s go.” Hank said and started to walk back towards their desks.

\---

The first day with Nines turned out to be less weird and stressing than they had expected. He did not push them past any of their limits and was merely assisting them in every way he could, while still not stooping so low as to become Gavin’s coffee boy. When their first day at work with him finally came to an end, they all clocked out and Nines eyed them.

“Will I be staying at your house, Lieutenant?”

“Please, call me Hank. You can call me Lieutenant when we’re at work, but at home, I wanna relax and be just Hank, not the Lieutenant.” Hank grumbled.

“I apologize, Hank.” 

“It didn’t bother you when I called you a Lieutenant whilst we were away from work.” Connor raised an eyebrow, envy bubbling in his chest. “Why is Nines any different?”

“’Cause he’ll be living with us and at home, I just want to unwind.” Hank sighed. “Let’s go home, alright Con?”

“Yes.” Connor agreed and followed to the car. Gavin did as well, having parked next to Hank.

“Alright, I’ll see you tomorrow.” Gavin nodded his head a little, unlocking his car.

“Greet the kitties from me.” Connor smiled. “See you tomorrow.”

Gavin rolled his eyes jokingly. “Yeah, ‘cause the cats totally speak English.” Hank glared at him a little and Gavin sighed. “I’ll greet them.”

“Thanks.” Connor smiled and got into the passenger seat. Nines took his place in the back before Hank said goodbye to Gavin by nodding at him and getting into his car.

When they got home, Hank lead Nines inside and the android looked around before Sumo came at him, jumping up Hank’s legs.

Hank rubbed his head. “Hey, boy.” He smiled. “Who’s hungry? Who wants dinner? Well, me. But you are surely hungry, as well.” He laughed and walked to the kitchen, Sumo quickly following.

“Is that Hank’s dog?” Nines asked.

“Yes. His name is Sumo. He’s a very good boy.” Connor smiled. “He’s not as energetic as those little dogs but he loves going on walks. I take him from time to time.”

When Hank came back, he opened the back door so that Sumo could go outside if he wanted to. He then turned to Connor and Nines.

“Alright, I say Nines takes the couch.” 

“And I’ll sleep-” Connor began but Hank interjected.

“In my bed, like last night.” He suggested.

“Alright.” Connor agreed.

“My blueprints of the house show that there is another bedroom. Is that Connor’s room?” Nines asked. Hank looked down and shook his head. 

Connor jumped into action. “We’ll talk about it another time if Hank feels up to it. I suggest that we settle down for the day and Hank eats dinner.” He turned to Hank. “Do you want me to cook for you, dad?”

Hank sighed and looked up, forcing a little smile. “By cooking do you mean throwing vegetables into a bowl or actually cooking.”

“I’ll make you a casserole. But I’ll put vegetables in it.” Connor suggested and Hank nodded, rolling his eyes. “I’ll put cheese on it, though.”

“Alright.” Hank agreed. “I’ll take Sumo for a little walk, I’ll see you in a bit.” With that, he went for the door.

“Be careful.” Connor called after him and went into the kitchen.

Nines didn’t know what to do once Hank had left and followed Connor. “What was that room used for?”

“I don’t think I should tell you.” Connor said, gathering supplies. “It’s personal and Hank should tell you himself.”

“Was it a bedroom?” Nines inquired and Connor sighed, starting to cut the vegetables. “Alright, I understand. I’ll not ask further.”

“It was his son’s room.” Connor mumbled. 

“Was?” Nines interjected. “Did he pass away?”

Connor nodded. “Yes, but Hank should tell you himself once he is ready. Just don’t ask him about it today, yes?”

“Yes, of course.” Nines agreed. “Do you need any help with dinner?”

“I can do it myself.” Connor smiled lightly.

“Connor, I am not trying to get between you and Hank. And I will leave as soon as I have a place to stay myself. Until then I want to help you. So will you please let me?”

“Fine, you can cut the carrots.” Connor smiled and kept cutting the potatoes. “Just don’t cut yourself.” He added, eyeing Nines.

Nines smiled at this display of care. “I won’t.” He assured.

When Hank got back, he was greeted with Nines and Connor sitting on the couch, talking to one another, the food in the oven. He undid Sumo’s leash and the dog lied down on his dog bed.

“Did you cook together?” 

“Yes.” Nines said quickly. “Dinner will be ready soon. In exactly 6 minutes and 23 seconds.”

“Alright.” Hank laughed. “Thanks for the exact time my food will still take.”

Connor looked up at Hank and smiled. “How was your walk, dad?”

“Uneventful. We just walked around. What else would we do?” He joked.

When the oven beeped, Connor jumped up. “Dad, get to the table. Dinner’s ready.” Connor smiled and walked into the kitchen.

Hank nodded and sat down at the table. “This is a little weird. You look so much alike. It’s like they copy and pasted you, Connor. Then they made a few minor adjustments and called it a day.” The man chuckled as Connor set down the food.

Nines smiled politely and then sat down at the table, frowning lightly, his LED spinning yellow. Was he merely a copy of Connor? If it hadn’t been for Connor’s predicament of the past month, then he wouldn’t even be alive. He was just continued so that the police could get his help. Even if they released him afterward, he was merely made as a copy of Connor and sent to Detroit to lift some of the pressure off of Connor.

Connor sat down next to Hank and eyed the other android. “Are you alright?” He inquired.

Nines’ head snapped up and he smiled politely. “Yes, I am. Thank you for being concerned for me. I was just thinking.”

“About what?” Connor smiled lightly.

“Nothing important. I was taking in my surroundings.” 

“Alright.” Connor said gently. “You will be alright with sleeping on the couch, right?”

“I’ll be just fine. I don’t need to sleep, anyway.” 

“But sleeping is nice.” Connor said enthusiastically. “I only started because it creeped Hank out to have me staring at him the whole night or to know that I was wide awake. But I’ve come to like it. I even dream. It’s of course not a real dream but rather my mind replaying memories and mixing them to create new scenarios. It’s nice nonetheless and you should try it.”

“I’ll give it a try eventually.” Nines promised and Connor smiled happily.

When dinner was over, Connor did the dishes while Hank got ready to go to sleep. Connor smiled softly, periodically reaching down to pet Sumo who was sitting next to him, thinking he’d get a treat. Eventually, he let the dog outside and turned towards Nines who was settling on the couch, sitting down and crossing his legs.

“Lying down is nice.” Connor suggested. “Even if you don’t sleep.”

Nines nodded and lied down on the couch, eyeing Connor. “Like this?”

“Whatever’s the most comfortable.” The other android smiled and closed the door once Sumo was back inside. “I’ll go to bed now. If you need anything, don’t hesitate to wake me. But do it via the telepathic connection. I don’t want to wake Hank up.” He chuckled. “I like to call it telepathy because it makes me feel like one of the superheroes in the movies Hank and I watched.”

Nines nodded. “I’ll be fine. Have a good night, Connor.”

Hank peeked his head into the living room. “Goodnight, Nines. If you need anything, you can wake me up.”

“When I first came here, you told me to never wake you up unless –and I quote- ‘the house is on fucking fire or some asshole is trying to break in’.” Connor mumbled, his LED spinning yellow for a second.

Hank eyed him for a moment. “Well, I think differently now. Can we go to sleep? I’m tired. It was a hard day.”

Connor nodded, looking at the ground with a sullen expression and followed Hank. “Goodnight, Nines. Goodnight, Sumo.” He waved and went to bed.

In bed, Hank turned to Connor. “You know why I told him to wake me, right? When I first met you, I hated androids and now I don’t do that anymore. People can change and I’m sorry I was such an asshole to you. But I’m trying to be better. And if the guy needs anything, I want to help him.”

Connor nodded and fumbled with the blanket. “I just don’t want you to –I don’t know how to say this.”

“To replace you?” Hank asked, leaning in. “Do you think I’ll replace you with Nines? You do, right? You’re scared that he’s better at everything and that I’ll stop loving you.” 

Connor nodded and looked down, tears spilling from his eyes. “I –I don’t want you to love him more than me. I’m so terribly selfish.” Connor sobbed. “But you’re my dad and I love you and-”

“Connor, calm down.” Hank shushed, hugging him closely. “I’ve got you. Listen, I’m not that good with feelings but I’m sure that I’ll never love anyone more than you. I mean, yeah I love Sumo but I love you two equally. And I’ll never replace you and abandon you. I’d rather fucking die than abandon you.”

Connor sobbed harder, clinging to Hank. “Thank you.”

“Is that why you’ve been calling me ‘dad’ in every other sentence?” Hank chuckled, trying to lift the mood. “Were you scared that Nines would try to take me away from you? I never thought you’d be so envious.”

“I think jealous would fit better.” Connor whimpered. “I don’t want him to take you from me. That’s jealousy more than it is envy.”

Hank chuckled and rubbed Connor’s back. “Don’t be scared.”

“I’m sorry.” Connor sniffled. “I should apologize to him. I know he wants to help but I want to be your son.”

“You’ll always be my son.” Hank promised. “No one could ever change that. Now try to sleep.” He lifted his arm from Connor and reached for his nightstand, pulling something out. “Here you go.”

Connor opened his eyes to see Sumo Jr. “I’m an adult.”

“And an adult can’t have a comfort item?” Hank laughed. “Just take him.”

Connor complied and held the plush to his chest. “Please don’t ever leave me.” 

“Never, son.” Hank promised. “Good night.”

“Good night, dad.” Connor smiled and cuddled closer to the man.

Little did they know that Nines had heard their conversation and was now deep in thought, his LED spinning yellow as he thought hard on the things he had just heard.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The angst is starting. It's only just starting. There will also be Reed900 (Gavin x RK900) in the following chapters but it'll mostly be in the background since this does focus on Connor.  
> I hope you liked this chapter. Leave a Kudos or Comment, if you did and want to. See you in the next chapter ^^


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nines helps with the investigation, Connor feels replaced, Hank tries his best and Gavin is trying to keep up his bad-boy facade.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally got around to finishing this chapter and uploading it. I will try to do it with more frequency from now on.  
> I will also focus a bit on Gavin's plans.  
> Enjoy ^^

The next day they were sent to investigate a new break-in. When they arrived at the house, Connor couldn’t help but frown.

“What’s wrong, kid?” Hank asked.

“This happened very close to Carl’s house. What if something happens to him or Markus or Simon? I like them.” He muttered. “I don’t want them to get hurt.”

“Don’t worry.” Hank said gently, reaching out to rub Connor’s arm. “We’ll find the guy who did this before he can hurt Carl.”

“Lieutenant?” They heard Nines call from the front door. “He picked the lock. He didn’t break it open but rather hacked into the electronic security system. He barely left a trace but I was able to find out.”

“Good job, I guess.” Hank walked up to Nines. Connor sighed softly and went after him, Gavin following close behind, sipping on his coffee.

“It shows that someone used the lock just thirty minutes before the family reported the break-in last night.” Nines explained. “But we probably won’t be able to find out who it was. But I’m sure the crime scene will help us.”

“Let’s fucking pray it does.” Gavin grumbled, walking past them and looking around. “They obviously fought. Look at the state of the house.”

“The file says that a family of four lived in this house. Two men and their two adopted children. They adopted the first child three years ago and the second child half a year ago. Both of them are academics. They had a female AP700 model that they had bought before the revolution. She is registered as Victoria and was fully integrated into the family as more of a close friend than an assistant.” Connor explained. “She tried to protect the family when the culprit attacked. One of the men –his name is James- told the police that she told them to take shelter in the panic room. When the police arrived, Victoria was missing and the family hadn’t seen the culprit’s face.”

“So did she run away or did she get kidnapped?” Gavin asked.

“They think she was taken by the culprit. Presumably, because he didn’t mean to kill anyone, but she had seen his face.” Nines explained. “But that is just my assumption. Anyway, we need to look for her.”

“I’ll tell Fowler when we get to the station.” Hank explained. “Let’s just look for clues.”

The other three nodded and while Nines and Connor were quick to take off, Gavin sipped at his coffee again before slowly starting to look around. Hank sighed and went to speak to the officer in the kitchen.

Connor was looking around upstairs in the children's’ rooms. Nines walked in after him and looked around.

“I don’t need help up here. You can go down the hall and check out the parents’ room.” Connor mumbled, trying to reach something on the shelf.

“Need help? I’m taller than you are.” Nines said and grabbed the camera off the shelf. “Think it might help?”

“I don’t know.” Connor sighed and looked up. “Thank you.” He smiled and nodded. “Now go check the parents’ room while I check this room.”

“As you wish.” Nines said politely and left. Connor could hear him talk to Gavin outside and continued to look around.

When he was done and had found nothing, he sighed in defeat and ventured into the hall, looking around for any clue that might help. That’s when he heard Nines and Hank talk downstairs.

“I analyzed the blue blood in the hallway upstairs. It isn’t Victoria’s blood, so it must be the culprit’s. He is GS200 model, specially designed for public security.” Nines explained. “Now we can narrow down our search.”

“Good job, Nines.” Hank praised. “Thank you. I’ll call Fowler immediately and tell him about Victoria, too.”

Connor felt his eyes water and swallowed thickly. He shouldn’t feel so jealous of RK900. He was just there to help but he couldn’t shake off the feeling of being replaced, not only in the police department but also in Hank’s heart. And as much as not being good enough at work hurt, the idea of Hank replacing him broke his heart. He quickly left for the bathroom to calm down. When he entered, he started to cry softly, sniffling to himself. 

The shower curtain was pulled back. Connor gasped and turned to face Gavin. He quickly wiped his eyes and gave a polite smile.

“What are you doing in there?”

“They said the culprit was searching for something, so I checked all the places you could hide that something. There’s a little metal cabinet in the shower. I searched for traces of blood or anything that the guy might have gotten from looking around here. But he didn’t think of looking in here, it seems.” Gavin shrugged. “Nothing in the cabinet anyway. Why are you crying?”

“It’s nothing.” Connor shook his head. “Don’t concern yourself with it.”

“Do you need to step outside? Is the crime scene too much for you?”

Connor couldn’t help but cry again at the actual concern Gavin showed for him. He shook his head and shuffled over to Gavin, embracing him. The man stepped out of the shower and hugged Connor back.

“What’s wrong?” He mumbled. “Better fucking tell me if you’re wetting my jacket with your tears.”

“I’m so selfish. I got upset just because Hank told Nines he did a good job.” Connor sniffled, holding onto Gavin.

“But those are your feelings. Just because you feel a certain way that doesn’t mean you’re selfish. For the longest time, I felt like that, too.” Gavin shrugged. “But now I realize I wasn’t selfish because I wanted people to love me.”

“Who?” Connor whispered.

“Let’s not talk about me.” Gavin grumbled. “It’s not important, anyway. Come on. Don’t be a dumb fuck. You should know that your behaviour isn’t selfish. I thought you were so advanced. Now you’re thinking like any other idiot out there.” He chuckled softly. “Like a glorified toaster.”

Connor couldn’t help but laugh a little. “I’m sorry, Detective. I can’t make toast for you.” He apologized. “But thank you. I feel a little better.” 

“Better not tell anyone about our little heart-to-heart and especially not about the hugging. They already think I’m turning soft because I stopped insulting you.” Gavin shrugged. “But when I snap at them they stop calling me a softie.”

“I can assure you that no one thinks you’re a softie –except for me and maybe the Lieutenant, too.” The grin on Connor’s face made Gavin roll his eyes.

“Whatever you say, tin can. Now let’s go downstairs. I don’t think we’ll find anything else around here.” 

Connor just nodded and went back downstairs, Gavin following him. Hank was just hanging up his phone and Nines was waiting patiently beside the man.

“We found nothing of importance upstairs.” Connor confirmed. “But we should check the security cameras and then go back to-”

“I already did.” Nines smiled a little. “I was able to check them by connecting to the house’s system. The culprit was obscured by a hood, but we know that he went out through the bathroom window on the ground floor. However, there are no traces of blue blood anywhere, except for the blood of the AP700 unit Victoria. But I contacted Captain Fowler and he told us to come back and talk to the family that was attacked.”

“Alright.” Hank put his hand up. “Calm down there.” He laughed a little. “Let’s get back to the station and ask the family if they saw anything. But I don’t think they did if the guy was wearing a hood and they hid. We can try, though.”

Connor nodded quickly. “Yes, I could question them, if you want to.”

“I could do so, too. I have an updated interrogation software that could allow me to-”

“I’ll do it.” Connor said a little too quickly for it to not raise questions. He quickly shut his mouth and looked down. “I can do it. You can look at the evidence.”

“He wants to help, kid.” Hank chuckled a little. “You’re pretty eager to question these people, huh?”

“I just want to be as helpful as he is.” Connor shrugged.

“He’s here to take a little weight off of your shoulders and you want to do everything he says, he’ll do.” Hank quickly ruffled Connor’s hair. “Let’s just get going.”

And they did. Within the next hour, they were at the station and Connor had questioned the family but found no new information. Connor was lightly distraught about it, partially because he couldn’t provide more information to Hank. 

When he got back to the desk, Hank looked up. “Found something?”

Connor shook his head and supported his head on his hand, sighing sadly. Hank looked worried and he would have felt bad about worrying the man if he had not needed his comfort this badly.

“It’s half as bad. And it’s not your fault. They just didn’t see the guy. Don’t worry about it.” Hank got up and walked over to Connor, putting a comforting hand on the android’s shoulder. “We’ll just keep looking.”

“Maybe Nines is better than me. Maybe I should have let him do the questioning.” He sighed sadly. “He should just take my place.”

Hank stiffened and got down, crouching next to the chair. “Connor, I want you to listen to me now. Alright, son?” That got the android’s attention and he looked up at Hank. “Connor, no one should take your place nor do they need to. You are doing a good job and times where things don’t go as planned or slower than planned, are normal. Are you scared that he might take your place here and that you will be no longer needed by the police?”

“Partially.” Connor mumbled. 

“Partially?” Hank asked. “What else is there?”

Connor was silent for a few moments before finally whispering. “It’s not just here.”

Hank looked at Connor for a second. “I’m bad with emotions and pep-talks and all that crap, but I want you to know something. People need you and people love you. You are needed here. Your co-workers like you. There are people that love you very dearly, Connor. And all of them would be sad if you were just replaced by Nines. You’re Gavin’s friend, you’re my son and you can be a big brother for Nines.” Hank heaved a sigh. “You are a living being and you are seen as one, thanks to Markus. And you can’t just replace a living being. Will you try to be a little bit more positive now? You’ll not be replaced so stop fearing that. I hate seeing you so sad.”

Tears were running down Connor’s face as he slid down the chair into Hank’s arms. “Thank you, dad.” He sobbed. “I want to stay with you forever. I don’t want you to take Nines in as your son and forget me.”

“You’re acting like a little kid that just found out his mom’s gonna have another child.” Hank chuckled. “Just because we like Nines and get along with him, doesn’t mean we like you any less. And it doesn’t mean that you’re no longer my son, Gavin’s friend and probably Fowler’s favourite officer.”

Connor nodded. “I just feel so selfish when I get envious of his work.”

“That’s normal.” Hank smiled gently. “It’s a human emotion.”

“Maybe I’m not that good at dealing with all of a human’s emotions, yet.” 

“That’s alright. I mean, it’s new for you, is it not? You take your time and we’ll support you.” Hank said. “Now let’s check on Nines and Gavin. Hopefully, they are getting along and doing their work.”

Connor clung to Hank tightly for a second, squeezing himself against the man before slowly letting go. “Let’s do that.” With that, he was on his way and Hank stumbled to his feet going after him.

Downstairs, Gavin and Nines were talking when Connor and Hank arrived.

“All I’m saying is that your jacket looks weird.” Gavin rolled his eyes. “No need to get so defensive.”

“All I’m saying is that it was designed by CyberLife. I was not getting defensive, Detective.” Nines answered, eyeing Gavin. “Are you getting offensive to hide the fact that you neither dislike me nor find me annoying?”

“What?” Gavin sputtered. “No way; I don’t like you. You’re way too stuck up. And in the last hour, you have come up to me like seven times, telling me to keep working. I was just trying to take a quick break. I don’t tend to befriend people a lot.”

“I was trying to keep you as productive as possible.” 

Gavin rolled his eyes again. “Yeah, whatever you say.” He then turned and spotted Connor and Hank. “We analyzed the blood on the evidence and Nines says that it is very likely that Victoria was knocked unconscious with the vase we found that had blue blood on it. The culprit could have taken her with him. Probably because she saw his face.”

“Now we need to find her.” Nines said. “Captain Fowler said that they would be contacting the news station and have them tell the citizens to look out for her. She could identify the culprit. And we also know how she looks.”

“Good, then let’s go back upstairs.” Connor suggested. He looked at the ground and back up at Nines. “Do you want to go out tonight? I mean, as friends with Hank and I. We could go to a bar and just talk; get to know each other. Gavin can come, too. If he wants to.”

Nines smiled politely. “I would really like that.”

Hank smiled at that. “Yeah, let’s do that. But that means I get to eat something I pick like Chinese or something.”

“But tomorrow, I’ll cook you something more healthy again.” Connor interjected.

Gavin tapped his foot on the ground. “I guess, a few hours with you idiots won’t hurt.”

“I’m glad you’ll join us, Detective.” Nines smiled at him and Gavin looked away.

“Whatever.” He mumbled and went back upstairs, the others following. 

Connor chuckled a bit, finding it rather amusing how much Gavin was trying to deny that he did in fact not only like Nines but also Connor and Hank. Maybe he could try to get him to open up more.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The culprit is found and the crew goes to arrest him, but a lot goes wrong. Meanwhile, Hank feels like everyone's dad.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is pretty long, I think. Sorry about that. As you can tell, the culprit is caught so there won't be much more of my (badly written) investigations. I'll just focus on Connor trying to get back to his old self, Hank trying to be a good father to everyone, Nines dealing with his feelings of being a replacement and Gavin opening up and trying to have a family.
> 
> Enjoy ^^

Victoria was found only a day later. An older man saw her. She looked terrified and he managed to calm her down, before calling the police. Nines was sent in to question her and she could identify the subject. It was a GS200 model just as they had predicted. Now the only thing left to do was to find him.

Gavin sighed and put the file down. “We can’t find him with zero evidence as to where he might be. He may have already left the town.”

“Now, detective, don’t be so negative.” Nines chimed in. “He doesn’t know that we know who he is. Maybe he hasn’t left the town, yet. That would be a real possibility.

“I hope we can find him before he struck again.” Connor whispered.

“I’m sure we will.” Hank promised gently. “I mean we solved the last case, too.”

And as if on cue, Tina walked up to them. “Hey, Fowler just told me that the suspect was seen on a security camera. He was close to an old run-down house, so he’s probably squatting in there. He wants you to check it out.”

Nines nodded. “Thank you, Officer Chen. We will check it out immediately.” He looked at the other three men. “Let’s go before he leaves.”

After getting the address from Tina, they all made their way to a rather secluded sub-urban part of the city where a lot of vacant, run-down houses were starting to fall apart. Gavin looked around and shook his head.

“How can anyone still live here?”

“Maybe they don’t have the money to go anywhere else.” Connor interjected.

“I would rather sleep in the shittiest apartment ever than live here. Looks like you can’t touch anything without getting tetanus and sepsis.” Gavin mumbled.

“Well, are you vaccinated?” Hank asked jokingly. “If not, you should probably stay in the car.”

“I was vaccinated.” He mumbled. “Me not dying of a preventable disease was probably the only thing my mom actually cared about. Her getting me vaccinated was the nicest thing she did to me.” He laughed dryly. “That and buying food so I could try and cook something up myself at eight years of age.”

Hank went quiet. “Was your father not there?”

“No, she accused him of being verbally abusive and they prohibited him from seeing me at all. He never did anything wrong but he didn’t dare contact me after their divorce. Didn’t want to go to jail.” Gavin explained away. “But that’s the past.”

“Gavin, I’m sorry.” Connor said gently, tears gathering in his eyes. “Imagining being in that situation when I was a child-“ He stopped. “That must have been horrible for you. Did you ever get to talk to your father?”

“No, he died when I was twelve in a hit-and-run. Some drunk asshole didn’t have the decency to call the damn cops even when someone was bleeding to death at the side of the road.” 

Nines eyed him. “Detective, I’m sorry to hear that. If you want someone to talk to about that, I’m always willing to listen.”

“Yeah, so am I.” Hank mumbled. “You’re an asshole but you’re not that bad and you surely didn’t deserve that kind of negligence.”

Connor sniffled quietly and put a hand on Gavin’s shoulder. “You’re always welcome at our house if you want to feel part of a family. I’m sure neither Hank nor Nines would be against you being there.” 

Gavin looked out the window, blinking against the tears in his eyes. “That’s nice of you, Connor. But I’m fine.” He shook his head. “Let’s go. I don’t need to be patronized. I just want to get along with my life.”

“I’m glad you’re being the opposite of how your mother was. I mean with Ashley.” Connor said gently.

Nines turned to him. “Do you have children, Detective?”

“No, sadly I don’t.” Gavin said and then looked up. “I mean, not that I want to start a family or anything. I’m fine on my own. I don’t have anyone to do it with anyway.”

“You can always adopt, you know?” Hank said from the backseat. “I mean, not that I care what you do with your life but if you want a child, I’m sure you could adopt. As a cop, you should be reputable enough for adoption.”

Gavin seemed to think about that. “Yeah, maybe I should look into that. But let’s get going. I think it’s the house over there.”

Nines nodded. “It is. Let’s go.”

They went to the house and upon finding the suspect, they quietly entered, blocking him from leaving the room. 

“Detroit Police Department!” Nines announced. “Stay where you are.”

The android looked up in shock and tried to run through the other door but Gavin stepped out into the way with Connor.

“Hands where I can see them.” Connor ordered, but his tone was a little bit more gentle than Nines’. “Sir, hands where I can see them!”

The suspect started to pet his jacket and then pulled out a gun. 

“Put the gun down!” Hank shouted. “Put it down!”

Frantically, the android aimed at Hank. Gavin gasped in shock and when the suspect pulled the trigger, he quickly pushed Hank out of the way. The younger detective cried out in pain and fell to his knees. 

Connor didn’t even see Hank and Nines charging after the suspect. He was by Gavin’s side immediately, calling for an ambulance.

“It’s alright. An ambulance is on the way.” Connor assured, trying to pry Gavin’s hand from his injured arm. “Let me see the wound, please. I know how to apply the appropriate pressure and where to push to stop the bleeding.”

Gavin took his hand away and groaned in pain when the android pressed on the wound. “Fuck.” He ground out. “A little bit less pressure wouldn’t hurt.”

“Yes, it would. You would lose too much blood.” Connor explained softly, using his other hand to find the pressure point near the armpit to stem the blood flow. “You’ll be alright. Why did you do that?”

That’s when they heard another gunshot from the hallway and looked. The suspect had shot himself and fell onto the floor, blood oozing from his head. Connor turned away, tears in his eyes.

“That’s a lot of blood.” He whispered.

Gavin reached out to stroke Connor’s shoulder with his uninjured arm. “It’s alright. He won’t hurt anyone anymore. No more blood, alright?”

Hank came running into the living room, kneeling down next to Connor. “Nines is calling back-up. Is he going to be okay?”

“Yes.” Connor choked out. “I’m stemming the blood flow.” He sobbed. “Is he dead?”

“Yes.” Hank whispered, rubbing Connor’s back. “Just keep taking care of Gavin, alright, son? You’re doing a good job.”

Connor nodded, tears running down his face. “Alright, dad.”

“Now you, Gavin.” Hank whispered. “Why the hell would you risk your life to save an old guy like me? He could have killed you.”

“Can’t let Connor lose his dad.” Gavin laughed dryly, closing his eyes. “Don’t let it get to your head, Hank. I did it more for Connor than you.”

“I won’t.” Hank joked and sighed. “Ambulance is on the way. I’m sure they’ll be here, soon. Just stay with us.”

But Gavin was already falling into unconsciousness and the last thing that he heard was Connor frantically trying to keep him awake.

\---

When he woke up again, he was in the hospital. Someone was holding his hand and his arm hurt badly. He looked to his left to see Connor sitting by his side, both hands tightly clenching Gavin’s hand, but seemingly in sleep-mode.

Nines walked up to him. “He’s asleep.” The android said quietly. “How are you feeling?”

“Like shit.” Gavin whispered.

“You were out for a few hours. They had to get you into surgery to get to bullet out without you losing too much blood. But they managed to stitch you up.” Nines explained. “I’m glad you are alive and well.”

“Well is debatable.” Gavin chuckled. “But I’m still breathing so I am fine.” 

Nines smiled softly. “That’s good. The culprit was indeed dead. But they managed to gain access to his memories. He was the attacker. Victoria was reunited with her family and they are well off.”

“That’s good.” Gavin nodded. “Your hands are shaking.” He pointed out. “Didn’t know androids could get shaken up. Don’t worry, it gets easier.”

Nines nodded and sat down. “He shot himself.” He whispered. “I thought that I could get him alive if I was non-violent but he did it to himself.”

“Yes, he did.” Gavin whispered. “But that isn’t your fault, Nines.”

“I know that, Detective.” Nines whispered. “But thank you for your kind words.”

“Just call me Gavin, okay? At least when we’re not at work.” 

“Alright, Gavin.” Nines smiled. “By the way, Tina and Chris visited earlier when you were still asleep. They left flowers and cards.”

“Can you give them to me?” Gavin whispered. “Can’t really move much with Connor clinging to my hand.”

Nines smiled. “Of course.” He said and got the cards for Gavin. “Can you read them?”

“Yes, Nines. I went to school. I can read.” Gavin chuckled and then nodded. “Yes, I can move my arms enough to read them.” He took them from Nines and then silently read his cards. “Tina told me to ‘Get better soon, you dick’ because apparently, she misses my annoying and rude remarks already. And Chris wrote a really actually nice card about how brave I was.”

“You were.” Hank said as he entered. “I never got the chance to actually say thank you. So I guess, I just did. I’m actually glad and relieved that you didn’t fucking die or something.”

Gavin chuckled. “No problem.” He mumbled. “So are all of you here because you waited for me to wake up? Don’t you have other things to do?”

“Fowler let us take the afternoon off to wait for you to wake up. I just got off the phone with him. He wants to officially thank you because you were brave enough to jump into the path of a bullet to save me.” Hank explained.

“That’s pretty cool, actually.” Gavin laughed dryly. “I’ll probably get a medal or a badge or he’ll thank me publically. But I don’t have any relatives to come and see it, so what does it matter?”

“Are you actually gonna make me say it?” Hank groaned in annoyance. He walked up to Gavin and rubbed his shoulder a bit. “We’ll be there of course. I mean we’re kind of a weird and fucked up family already, aren’t we?”

Gavin blinked against the tears in his eyes. “Don’t be so sappy.” He grumbled. “Should we wake Connor?”

Connor looked up at that and then smiled. “How are you, Gavin?”

“I’m pretty good.” He smiled gently. “Listen, you guys don’t have to stay at the hospital with me, really. I’m not a little boy. I can stay here myself. I mean, even as a little boy I had to stay at the hospital all alone when I got my tonsils removed. It’s really not that big of a deal.”

“Gavin.” Hank sighed. “Now we’ll be sure to stay even more. How old were you?”

“I think I was seven years old.” Gavin shrugged. “Not that big of a deal.”

“Fuck, and I was such an asshole to you the past years. Had I know how shitty your mother treated you-”

Gavin interrupted Hank. “Come on, don’t go there now. I was a dick to you, too. I looked up to you and then you fell so far and I was disappointed and I was sad that I lost someone I looked up to. I was an asshole, you were an asshole. It’s not a big deal.”

“How about we just try to get along? I mean Connor and Nines like you, so I should learn to get along with you, too.” Hank suggested.

“Good idea.” Gavin smiled a little. “Get a chair, then. If you’re staying. You shouldn’t be standing around.”

Connor jumped up. “Let me do it for you, dad.” He quickly got a chair for Hank.

Gavin closed his eyes. “Is anyone feeding me cats?”

Nines nodded. “We’ve asked Tina to do it. I hope it’s alright that we gave her your keys for that. She’ll return them to us tomorrow morning and we’ll bring them over when we visit you.”

“That’s alright. How else would she get into the flat? But you don’t have to visit me every day, really.”

“We will.” Connor chimed in, smiling. “You saved Hank and you were there for me when I needed help as a kid. So now we’re here for you.”

The three spend the rest of the evening with Gavin, only leaving once the man had fallen asleep. Connor and Nines spend most of the time talking to Gavin and distracting him from the pain. Hank just sat there, not talking much and contemplating on how to try and be there for Gavin. 

\---

The next day, Hank, Connor and Nines had to work but when they finally got off and had the chance to see Gavin, they were on their way immediately.

Connor smiled to himself. “Do you think he’ll like the card we got him?” He had gotten a card with kittens on it and made everyone at the station sign it. 

“I’m sure.” Hank promised, smiling lightly. “And I’m sure he’ll like the cat plush you got him and the flowers you insisted on buying, too.”

“I want to say thank you.” Connor mumbled sheepishly. 

“I think it’s nice that you care for Gavin.” Nines said from the backseat. 

When they arrived at the hospital, they made their way up to the floor Gavin was on but stopped once they were in front of the door and heard laughing from inside his room. Connor immediately knew who it was but Hank and Nines had to lean in closer to peak through the gap in the door.

Gavin was sitting upright and to the far right of his bed. His goddaughter Ashley was on the bed with him, showing him something that Connor thought to be a drawing.

“And this one is of Mommy and me with our new cat.” Ashley explained matter-of-factly. “Her name is Lily.”

“That’s a really pretty name.” Gavin smiled gently. “It’s prettier than Mittens and Whiskers for sure.”

“You’re just not creative!” Ashley proclaimed and laughed.

Gavin nodded and grinned. “Yeah, but luckily I have you to make up for that.”

The little girl smiled and hugged Gavin. “I’m glad you’re okay. I love you, uncle Gav!”

The detective’s face contorted into something that Hank could only identify as a gentle smile. “And I love you, Ash.” He chuckled. “But you told me that about twenty times now.”

Suddenly a woman approached the three men at the door. “Are you here to see Gavin?” She smiled. “I’m Abigail; a friend of his.”

“Oh, you’re Ashley’s mother.” Connor smiled. “Can we go in or are we interrupting?”

“I’m sure he’s fine with you coming in.” She smiled. “I was in there, too. But I stepped out to get a coffee.”

Hank nodded. “That means we’re going in.” With that, he stepped inside and laughed. “Hey, you softie. We came to visit you. And Connor wanted to give you a few things.”

Gavin looked up, his face turning red. “Oh shut up, old man.” He joked.

Connor smiled and approached him. “I got you flowers, a card and this cat plush. I got everyone at the station to sign the card.”

Gavin reached out to take it, hissing as it hurt his arm. “Damn it.” He swore.

Ashley turned her head. “Are you okay, Gavin?”

“I’m fine. Just can’t move my right arm too much.” He explained. “Can I let you of you so I can use my left arm?”

“Of course!” The girl exclaimed. “I’m sorry!”

“It’s fine.” Gavin assured and took the card. “Oh wow, the cats look just like Mittens and Whiskers.” He chuckled before freezing. “I mean like my cats-”

“We know your cats' names, Gavin.” Hank interrupted. “Just admit to them.”

“Fine, they look like my cats.” Gavin grumbled. “Oh, you really got everyone to sign.”

Connor nodded, bouncing on his feet. “Yes!” He smiled. “Do you like it?”

“Yes, I like all of it very much. Thank you. But I don’t have a vase here for the flowers.” Gavin mumbled. “Why did you get me flowers?” He laughed. “What am I? Your grandma?”

“Don’t be a dick.” Hank mumbled, trying to be quiet so Ashley wouldn’t hear.

Abigail shook her head. “I’ll ask them for a vase.” With that, she left.

“Uncle Gavin, I need to leave soon. I have soccer practice.” Ashley said sadly. “But I’ll come over when I have time.”

“That’s alright. You go and play soccer, kiddo.” He smiled gently, rubbing her back. “I’ll see you soon enough.”

“But I’ll leave my drawing here for you.” She explained.

“Are those your drawings?” Connor smiled. “They are really nice.”

“Thank you.” She beamed at him.

Abigail came back, holding a plastic vase. “Alright, I’ll fill it up for you and then we’ll have to leave.” She smiled and rubbed Gavin’s shoulder. “And you rest, you ridiculously reckless idiot.” 

Gavin grinned. “I’m sorry.” He sneered.

Abigail shook her head again and filled the vase, before putting the flowers in and turned to her daughter. “Ash, say goodbye to uncle Gavin. We’ll visit him in the next few days, alright?” She smiled.

Ashley nodded and went to hug Gavin before pressing a kiss to his cheek. “Goodbye, Gavin. Get well soon!” With that, she got off the bed and waved while she left.

“See you soon, Ash.” He turned to the others when she was gone. “Not a word.”

“Gavin, stop being a fucking prick.” Hank laughed. “Just admit to being a softie.”

Connor looked at Hank. “Dad, don’t be mean to him.” He whispered.

“I’m not being mean to him.” Hank chuckled. “He knows I’m joking. Anyways, do you know when you’ll get out of the hospital?”

“Tomorrow afternoon if everything turns out well.” He explained. “But they say they actually don’t want me to leave too soon. They’re worried because I lost blood and I told him I live alone. But I’ll leave as soon as I can.”

Connor looked up at that. “We’ll have to check in on you then.”

“Yes.” Nines agreed. “We’ll check in on you and make sure you’re alright.”

“I guess. I mean you’ll do it whether I agree or not.” Gavin shrugged.

Connor smiled and sat down on the bed. “Let’s just talk about something else. How about we talk about what you want to do when you get out.”

“I’m not five, Connor.” Gavin chuckled. “And I’m only in here for three days.” He saw Hank glare at him slightly and quickly shook his head. “Yeah, sorry about that. Anyways, I just want to see my cats, I guess.”

“That’s nice. Maybe I can visit them, too.” Connor smiled.

And again they spend a few hours with Gavin until they had to leave. Connor was happily chatting away while Nines watched fondly, given his opinion a few times. Hank watched them from his chair at the foot of the bed, smiling a little. As much as he fought with Gavin, he had to admit that the man was not that bad. And if he really had a bad childhood, maybe he could try and be as fatherly to him as he was to Connor and kind of to Nines. After all, at the moment he was basically everyone’s dad anyways, so being a bit of a father-figure to Gavin wouldn’t to much harm.


End file.
